File folder assembly



A ril 5, 1966 A. PORTEOUS ETAL FILE FOLDER ASSEMBLY Filed Sept. 25, 1963 s U R 9 8 4 mwa 1 "M way! 3 E 1 D M D mm H W C D Q E Y A B 1 all/I'll, l==

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United States Patent 3,244,179 FILE FOLDER ASSEMBLY Archibald Porteous and Edward William Cooper, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, assignors to Gary Industries, Inc., a corporation of Nevada Filed Sept. 23, 1963, Ser. No. 310,678 1 Claim. (Cl. 12916.8)

This invention relates to improvements in a file folder assembly and particularly to suspension file folders and index tabs adapted for use on such folders.

Suspension file folders generally are comprised of a substantially rectangular sheet of heavy paperboard folded midway between its ends to provide a V-type folder. The folder walls are provided on their upper edges with a hanger bar that projects beyond the folder ends and is formed with hook-like terminal portions that engage over and ride along guide rails. An index tab is mounted in a selected position along one of the hanger bars.

The present invention involves the novel construction of the file folder assembly and in particular to the structure of the hanger bar which includes index tab locating projections or teats mutually spaced along its length and novel means on the hook-like terminal portions which is adapted to minimize frictional resistance to sliding of the file folders along the usual guide rails and reduce noise. The deten-t projections or teats cooperate with a novel index tab that is slidable along the hanger bar for retaining the index tab in a preselected position thereon.

It is therefore an object of the invention to provide a novel file folder assembly.

Another object is to provide a file folder with a novelty constructed hanger bar.

Another object is to provide a novelly constructed index tab.

Another object is to provide a file folder hanger bar with spaced teats for limiting sliding of an index tab therealong.

Another object is to provide a structure of the character described which is not expensive or difficult to manufacture and which is very efiicient in use.

The structure by means of which the above noted and other advantages and objects of the invention are attained will be described in the following specification, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, showing a preferred illustrative embodiment of the invention, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a suspension file folder assembly, showing the features of the invention.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged fragmentary view of the upper marginal edge of the file folder.

FIG. 3 is a detail sectional view taken on line 3--3 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a detail sectional view taken on line 4-4 of FIG. 2, and showing the index tab mounted thereon.

FIG. 5 is an enlarged end elevational view of the index tab.

FIG. 6 is an enlarged detail elevational view of a hooklike terminal portion of a hanger bar.

FIG. 7 is a detail sectional view taken on line 7-7 of FIG. 6.

Referring to the exemplary disclosure of the invention shown in the accompanying drawings and particularly to the assembly shown in FIG. 1, the file folder 11 includes a front and a back wall 12, 13 respectively, joined along their lower edges by a hinge fold 14. Each wall has a hanger bar 15 secured to its top edge portion. The hanger bar is generally a U-shaped strip of thin metal or plastic which is inverted and telescoped over the engaged edge of a wall of the folder so as to closely embrace its 3,244,179 Patented Apr. 5, 1966 ICC top edge portion between the depending legs thereof. Said hanger bar may be secured firmly to the wall of the folder in any suitable manner but preferably is secured, as shown, by striking at least several similarly facing, longitudinal ribs 16 in the depending legs thereof, of which the ribs of one leg extend into the recesses defined by the ribs of the other leg in manner as to firmly clamp and secure said top edge portion of the folder wall to said legs. The ribs 16 are spaced apart so as to define flat areas 17 between them and on each such flat area there is provided a projection or teat 18 that extends outwardly from the face of the hanger bar in a direction opposite to that in which said ribs 16 face. The teats serve as means to resist free sliding along the hanger bar of an index tab 19 to be described in detail presently.

The hanger bars are of greater length than the width of the folder so as to provide projecting terminal portions 21 each of which is formed on its lower edge with a notch 22 provided to engage over the usual guide rails 23. It has been found that file folders having notched terminal portions tend to scrape the guide rails when the file folders are moved therealong to such degree as to resist sliding and create objectionable noise. In the present disclosure, a tongue or lip 24 (FIGS. 6 and 7) is provided on one of the walls of the hanger bar at the notch, which lip is rolled inwardly through the notch in the related wall and then upwardly over said related wall to provide a rolled bearing surface 25 for bearing on the guide rail.

The index tab 19, best shown in FIG. 5, is preferably made of extruded plastic material and it includes an index strip holder 26 to receive an index strip 27, and a pair of spaced depending legs 28, 29, which are adapted to be fitted over the hanger bar for sliding movement therealong. The index tab preferably has a length equal to or greater than the length of the ribs 16 but it always is less than the spacing between adjacent teats 18. Each of the legs 28, 29 has an inwardly upwardly inclined flange 31 on its lower edge. These flanges are adapted to coact with the respective bottom edges of the hanger bar walls to resist index tab removal in any manner other than by sliding the index tab lengthwise off of the end of the hanger bar.

One of the legs, such as leg 28, is bowed outwardly so as to bridge the ribs 15. The other leg 29 is straight or fiat, and, as shown in FIG. 4, it generally has no firm bearing on the underlying wall of the hanger bar. Its free movement longitudinally along the hanger bar is restrained by the teats 18 which have a projection slightly greater than the normal spacing between the leg 29 and the hanger bar wall. As best shown in FIG. 1, the index tab 19 normally is positioned on the hanger bar between adjacent teats 18. When it is desired to relocate the index tab it is firmly advanced initially against an adjacent projection or teat whereupon the leg 29 is cammed outwardly sufiiciently to permit it to ride up over the projection.

Although we have described a preferred embodiment of the invention, in considerable detail, it will be understood that the description thereof is intended to be illustrative, rather than restrictive, as many details of the structure may be modified or changed without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention. Accordingly, we do not desire to be restricted to the exact construction described.

We claim:

A suspension file folder assembly comprising a file folder having a top edge portion, an elongated inverted U-shaped hanger bar providing depending legs which embrace said top edge portion between them, said depending legs having formed therein -a plurality of similarly facing, longitudinally spaced apart, longitudinal ribs, of which the ribs of one leg extendinto the recessesdefined by the ribs of the other leg, whereby the ribs of the legs coact with one another to secure the top edge portion of the folder between them, the longitudinal spacing between the ribs of the legs defining spaced-apart fiat areas, a teat provided on each of said flat areas and which projects therefrom in a direction opposite to the direction in which the ribs face, an index tab slidably mounted on said hanger bar, said index tab having width slightly less than the spacing between said teats and including spacedapart dependinglegs fitted to said hanger bar and receiving same therebetween, at least one of the index-tab legs terminating along its lower edge in an inturned flange engaging against the lower edge of one of the hanger-bar legs thereby to prevent unintentional separation of the index tab fromthe hanger bar, the one of said index tab legs which overlies said other hanger-bar leg being bowed outwardly, by an amount enabling it to ride over the ribs of said other leg, and the other index-tab leg being substantially flat throughout its area whereby it normally lies closely against the outer surface of the teated hanger-bar leg, said teats and said other index-tab leg coacting to hold the index tab in a selected position along the length of the hanger bar.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,910,985 11/1959 Epstein et a1. 12916.8 3,039,470 6/1962 Podner 12916.8 3,062,217 11/1962 Woodhouse 129-167 FOREIGN. PATENTS 508,740 7/ 1939' Great Britain.

196,372 10/ 1928 Switzerland.

321,124 6/1957 Switzerland.

JEROME SCHNALL, Primary Examiner. 

